Depression linked to greater risk of peripheral artery disease

April 20, 2012

Depression may be associated with an increased risk of arterial narrowing in the legs and pelvis, a condition known as peripheral artery disease (PAD), according to research presented at the American Heart Association's Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology 2012 Scientific Sessions in Chicago.

While experts know that depression is a risk factor for constricted heart arteries, its effect on PAD is uncertain. Researchers used data from 1,024 men and women in the Heart and Soul Study and followed them for about seven years.

At the study's start, 12 percent of participants with depression had PAD, compared to seven percent of patients without depression who had PAD. Similarly, nine percent of depressed patients and six percent of those without depression had PAD-related events during the seven-year follow-up.

These findings demonstrate the importance of depression screening and treatment for PAD patients, according to the researchers.

Related Stories

(HealthDay) -- Having both diabetes and depression significantly increases the risk of dying in the years following a heart attack, beyond the increased risk from either condition alone, according to a study published in ...

Having an optimistic outlook on life—a general expectation that good things will happen—may help people live longer, according to a new study from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The study found that women ...

Medical researchers at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich have discovered why a new class of anticoagulants designed to reduce the risk of strokes can—in rare cases—increase the incidence of heart attacks.

Case Western Reserve University researchers have developed a portable sensor that can assess the clotting ability of a person's blood 95 times faster than current methods—using only a single drop of blood.

0 comments

Please sign in to add a comment.
Registration is free, and takes less than a minute.
Read more

Click here to reset your password.
Sign in to get notified via email when new comments are made.